Welcome to Spellbound, where paranormal is the new normal.Wands In A Lifetime includes the first 3 books in the Spellbound paranormal cozy mystery series-- Curse the Day (Book 1) The only magic Emma Hart believes in is caffeine and the power of the dryer to lose one sock per load. A public interest lawyer buried under a mound of student debt, Emma’s whole life has been one turn of bad luck after another. Her streak seems to continue when she gets lost on the way to see a client in the remote Pocono Mountains. A chance encounter with a suicidal angel lands her in Spellbound, a town where supernaturals have been cursed to remain for centuries--probably not the best time for Emma to discover that she's actually a witch. Between the recent murder of the town’s public defender, a goblin accused of theft, remedial witch classes, and the attention of one smoking hot vampire, Emma struggles to navigate this unfamiliar terrain without losing her mind...or her life. Doom and Broom (Book 2) Emma Hart hasn’t had a moment’s peace since her arrival in Spellbound. Her fear of heights hits an all-time high when she’s tasked with mastering a broomstick. It doesn’t help that Lady Weatherby seems determined to make basic witch training feel more like the magical ninja warrior championships. When a werewolf is found dead and Daniel is named as the prime suspect, Emma takes the initiative to prove that the angel’s halo is firmly intact, once again stepping on the hooves of the cranky centaur, Sheriff Hugo. The heat is on as Emma struggles to get a grip on her broomstick and identify the killer before it’s too late. Spell's Bells (Book 3) When a sleeping dwarf is found entombed in a glass coffin and remedial witch Sophie is blamed, Emma Hart must defend her friend while trying to get to the bottom of the enchantment. The investigation lands Emma smack dab in the middle of Spellbound’s dating scene, where plenty of the town’s residents are eager to make her acquaintance. Emma knows it's time to kick her witchy skills up a notch if she expects to survive Thursday night speed dating and keep sweet Sophie from a life in paranormal prison. Spell's Bells is the third book in the Spellbound paranormal cozy mystery series. These are full-length, humorous cozy mystery novels. Books in the series Curse the Day, Book 1 Doom and Broom, Book 2 Spell's Bells, Book 3 Lucky Charm, Book 4 Better Than Hex, Book 5 Cast Away, Book 6 A Touch of Magic, Book 7 A Drop in the Potion, Book 8 Hemlocked and Loaded, Book 9 All Spell Breaks Loose, Book 10
Annabel Chase is the author of urban fantasy and cozy mystery novels. She would love to live in a magical town where she can shop at Ready-to-Were for the the perfect outfit, flirt with hot angels and vampires, and cook gourmet meals without exerting any effort. Visit her on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/Annabel-Chas... or on her website at www.annabelchase.com.
2022 bk 197. I needed something with gentle humor, a very soft mystery, and enjoyable characters and found that with this paranormal mystery series. I enjoyed all three books and am looking forward to reaidng more in the series. It's not a blockbuster or super sophisticated in style, but it was what I needed in the moment.
This is an adorable series. I thoroughly enjoyed reading all the books in the set. What fascinated me the most was Emma Hart's ability to see the ghost and her funny banter with her familiar, an owl. She's brilliant, has a great sense of humor and brave enough to fight for her friends' sake. This is one of the best paranormal cozies I have ever read.
Basically Emma Hart, age 25 orphaned as a child now a lawyer, is on her way to visit a client when she takes what is presumably a wrong turn (never clarified) and crosses into Spellbound a paranormal town. Emma meets a fallen angel Daniel and thinks she's dreaming. When she tries to leave she can't cross back over the boundary, meaning she's just as trapped as the rest of the residents.
Turns out Emma's a witch and didn't know it. She's offered a job replacing the recently murdered public defender, Gareth, which also includes his home and office. While trying to resolve the case for his last client Emma also looks into Gareth's murder, takes remedial magic classes and generally creates a trail of trouble by questioning everything about her new home. Books 2 and 3 follow the same plan, murder/spell gone wrong/romantic endeavour/solve crime.
The first book is weak, it's not well written, has poor dialogue and Emma goes from thinking it's a dream to accepting Spellbound and the paranormal world quicker than I can say it.
Biggest irritation: There's a repeated line in all three books that it's Daniel's fault for bringing Emma across the boundary when he picked her up HOWEVER the author seems to have forgotten her premise that NO ONE can cross the border.. THEREFORE Daniel cannot have carried Emma across because he, himself, cannot have been on the other (human) side.. Emma crossed the border.. and less irritating but still annoying enough to mention.. the car (Sigmund) was supposed to be on the outside and yet Daniel retrieved it and had it fixed up.. no mention of how he crossed the border to achieve this or what happened to her possessions.. how she can afford to live when she has so few clients!!
The dialogue does become less wooden and a little more realistic but it's got a long way to go to achieve a better rating. I don't know if this was one of Chase's earliest books but had I started with this I wouldn't have read her other series about the Federal Bureau of Magic, starring Eden Fury, which is markedly better. Of course there's also the Starry Hollow series, starring Ember Rose, which is even better than that. Given that I know she can produce better results I am going to give the rest of the series a chance.. fingers crossed.
Three cosy mysteries featuring Emma Hart, a lawyer, and a recently discovered witch who discovers herself accidentally trapped in the magical town of Spellbound.
Book 1: Curse the Day Emma Hart is trying to save someone, when she finds herself trapped in a cursed town. To top it off, she also discovers that she is apparently a witch- which means she has to go back to school and learn how to use her magic. The local Public Defender, a vampire, has been murdered, and since Emma is a lawyer, she finds herself taking his place- and investigating his death!
Book 2: Doom and Broom When a werewolf is discovered dead, and presumed murdered, Daniel the Angel comes under suspicion, and Emma investigates to prove her friend innocent. Meanwhile Emma is trying to master her broomstick flying lessons…
Book 3: Spells Bells A dwarf is discovered under the eternal sleep spell, and since Emma’s friend Sophie is found nearby, she is accused of having done the deed! Emma is determined to clear Sophie’s name, which means she finds herself speed dating. Meanwhile Emma’s magical cooking classes are providing a new problem for her- she’s never been the best of cooks, and investigating her own origins causes her to meet some interesting new people.
These are three fun books to read. Emma is a smart woman, a less than savvy witch, and forever finding herself in unusual circumstances, some of which are rather amusing. Her interest in the fallen Angel, Daniel, is on the slow burn side, while the discovery of her own background makes for an intriguing, ongoing subplot.
This omnibus edition makes for an enjoyable way to discover the town of Spellbound, it’s fascinating characters, and the magical world they all inhabit.
A thoroughly entertaining cosy paranormal mystery series.
This was a compilation of the first 3 books in the Spellbound mystery series. Emma Hart, a 20-something lawyer got lost in the crack woods of the Pocono Mountains in Pennsylvania on her way to see a client. Instead she spied a depressed angel, Daniel, on a high cliff overlooking a lake, contemplating suicide. In her effort to save him she finds she has crossed an invisible barrier and cannot return to her old life and is stuck in Spellbound forever. It all sounds quite twee, not my usual cup of tea, but I enjoyed immersing myself in Emma's life as she adjusts to learning she is a witch and getting acquainted with the various denizens of Spellbound, including vampires, trolls, satyrs, werewolves, and a coven of other witches. I adored the Harry Potter books so was able to adjust to Emma's new reality with no trouble. By the end of the 3rd book I am totally involved in her life and cheering her on! She is deathly afraid of heights so learning to fly on a broomstick is a challenge. She is in the remedial class at the Witches' Academy, gets her wand (a lovely turquoise one she promptly named Tiffany), and is drafted to be the town's public defender. Yes, I laughed out loud! I would definitely enjoy reading the other books in this cozy mystery series.
Curse the day 5⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ & 0 🌶️. This gave amazing autumnal spooky season witchy fantasy vibes. It was like Halloweentown for (young) adults in book form. It was a very easy and enjoyable quick listen. I liked it from the start.
I loved Emma’s personality she was so sarcastic and funny. I liked that the storyline had an underlined mystery but was also a good intro into Spellbound and all its inhabitants.
The combination of magic and modern day things such as overly complex lattes, automated magical market shelves and clothing stores was great. So it also had an urban fantasy feel. I’m looking forward to listening to more.
Doom and broom 5⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ & 0🌶️. This was just as great as the first instalment. I absolutely love all the characters and the narrator does a fantastic job bringing all the paranormal creatures tributes to life. I will continue reading just to find out the spellbound tea.
Spells bells 4 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ & 0🌶️. This one wasn’t as impressive as the previous two. I still enjoyed the story and will probably continue reading. They’re very entertaining spooky season books.
I liked all of these books in this set. It was a quick easy read just in time for Halloween. It wasn't scary but did have a murder and a witch. In the first book, I had no idea who the murderer was but caught on in the middle of the second book and in the third book it was pretty easy to figure out. The characters developed nicely as the author wrote on. One weird thing, some of the characters I liked in book 1, I didn't like as well in books 2 and three and vice versa. This made all the books interesting to me and I would definitely buy more books from this author in this genre.
The idea of having the witch heroine being a Public Defender was genius. :) I'm not too sure about the depressed angel love interest but we shall see. I much prefer Emma, at this time, with the charming vampire. I love the vampire ghost who's gay and living in Emma's house that used to be his. He was also the previous Public Defender. If you want to know more, you will have to go read the books. :)
A fun, entertaining read. Emma is on her way to see a client, takes a wrong turn and sees someone she thinks is about to throw themselves off a cliff into a lake.
From this beginning she finds herself stuck in a town of assorted supernatural, witches, werewolves, wereweasels (|), fairies, a minotaur, a fallen angel... and taking on the role of the recently, absolutely, deceased public defender vampire.
The story winds together Emma discovering she is stuck here because she is a born witch, attending the witch academy to learn how to cope with this, establishing relationships and friendships - and defending a gnome client.
And I enjoyed it so much I am definitely going to read the next in the series.
Ms Chase has written a trio of books that are absolutely lighthearted, about a young woman who ultimately finds herself in the most unusual situation and makes the best spiked lemonade that causes uproariously fun. The books are full of great unique characters. The core character an attorney finds that her expertise is stretched, twisted, and turned upside down when she literally falls into a new lifestyle. For those who love fantasy, mystery, witches, vampiries and all mystical creatures who have just as many problems, plights, conundrums as humans but are then heaped upon with magical problems too...you will love this trio set. And I want to read more in the series. Hats off to the author. Thanks for the delightful read.
I’ve always liked books about witches, magic, fantasy or paranormal so I’m not surprised that I liked this one. It is like the TV series, Once apron a time, which I enjoyed as well.
I like the main character, Emma, and the others as well. The story s absolutely unreal, yet it held my attention to the point of having to finish it only taking time out for food,sleep and taking care of my two pets.
I don’t like to write reviews and this is not a typical one. I’m just saying that I thoroughly enjoyed it and suggest that others give it a try. Open up your minds to the unreal world, sit back and just read. I’m looking forward to readying book 2.
This was a wonderful series - a great find. Magical creatures of all kinds...including a handsome angel, are condemned to forever remain in Spellbound--a curse by a sorceress. Poor Emma, accidentally ends up in Spellbound, only to discover she's a witch and now stuck in Spellbound as well. Lucky for her, the town's public defender was murdered (not so lucky for him), and since she's a lawyer, becomes the new public defender. The series follows Emma as she defends clients and investigates murder while she discovers secrets of her past. And she might be Spellbound's residence their only chance to freedom.
I have really enjoyed getting to know the characters in this series. These books are very character driven, and there are a lot of quirky and fun characters. Agnes and her cronies are some of my favorite, but you don't meet them until book 3, Spells Bells. The mystery is really kind of a subplot, which I think is pretty typical for a cozy mystery, but some of the solutions are surprising. If this sounds like the kind of thing you like to read, I think you will enjoy this series.
I listened to the first two books - good enough. The created world is not enough for my willing suspension of disbelief. There are ten books in this series so apparently when it first appeared, it had enough fans to keep it going and beyond as there was a spinoff series that wasn't put on audible. It also didn't help that I figured out the murderer(s) too quickly. It does have quite a lot of interesting characters, and that is also a bit of an issue - the narrator doesn't distinguish all of them well enough.
Emma believe in the magic of caffeine, a public interest lawyer, with a mound of debts. Driving to a client, she thinks someone is ready to jump off a cliff. Stopping, and mishaps happen, and now she is in Spellbound. A place where one can’t leave. Was it meant to be, she learns she is paranormal. With her background she accepts a defense lawyer. position. With each book a murder to solve.They were good flowing plots, a lot of humor, and enjoyable to read.
These stories are very entertaining! They remind me of Harry Potter, only a grown up version. A woman gets trapped in a magical town and cannot return to the outside world because she’s a witch! But she had no idea she was a witch, and so had to learn everything from spells and potions to broom riding! She had many adventures and hilarious experiences during her schooling.
I enjoy the first three books and am continuing to read the rest of the series.
Good world building and characters. I defiantly look forward to finding out the details/circumstances of the curse.
My only complaint is the main couple/love interest. I don’t buy a healthy relationship between Daniel and Emma. I wish she would give Dem a chance. But I am not the author.
Overall very enjoyable, a little addictive, and very fluffy.
Five stars for these three books. A good deed gone wrong or was it. Good characters all different but quite the same. Although these books have one main character all the others are given enough writing time. Giving the books more depth to them. Mystery abounds and with no one looking for a fix seems a few could be fixed at one time
I loved the premise of this series. Usually you get a witch trying to fit in with every day humans, but here you get someone who never knew they were a witch dealing with paranormals. Plenty of humor and a great story with social commentary that can be applied in our daily life. I look forward to reading the rest of this series.
I hadn't read this author and decided to give it a try as I love cozy mysteries and the paranormal genre. Emma Hart discovers she is actually a witch when she accidentally winds up stuck in Spellbound and unable to return to the human world due to a curse set on the town ages ago. Her introduction to her new life is a fun read. Thoroughly enjoyable.
This book started off fairly interesting, until the first language showed up in the first chapter of so. I was hoping it wouldn't continue so u tried to press on. It didn't for another chapter or so, but there's it was again. This story could have been written in entirety, without any of the curse words.
What a GREAT start to a book series!!! These first three books really paint the picture and create a special bond with the reader. I can't wait to continue on to the next set of books to see what exciting things happen to our NEW resident witch next!!!!! ❤🧡💛💚💙💜❤🧡💛💚💙💜
Solving crime cases when you've just been thrown into a new culture can't be easy. But the protagonist uses the opportunity to dig deeply into what makes this realm of mythical creatures tick. The author news a fine inclusive mix of characters. Werewolves dating fairies? Well, why not?
This is a really good series. It's fantasy, but I like the characters and setting. Emma is smart and remarkably adaptive. With all of her anxieties, why is she not freaking out more about her situation?? The books are very well written and easy to read. I'll continue to read the others in this series.
Spellbound is paranormal city where any supernatural being you can think of are here. Emma Hart stumbles upon the town by accident when her car breaks down. Normally human can not break the barrier but it seems unbeknownst to her she is a supernatural. Join Emma on a journey to discover who she is and when murder hits she finds herself in the middle of an investigation.
I love Annabel Chase, and it seems absolutely anything that she writes is fantastic! I'm ready to devour everything by her. This is such a great series! I love the concept of getting stuck in a town of only paranormals! It's so much fun to find out what type of super Emma will meet next!! 😁😁😁❤❤❤
Different. Pleasant read with some very unusual characters. Emma Hart, young attorney, gets trapped in a paranormal village. It is determined by the village counsel that she is a witch. Emma is then sent to school and takes over the public defender duties of a vampire who has been murdered. Then the fun begins. Will start volume 4 today.
I really enjoyed the whole concept of a cursed town full of magical creatures. Emma was funny. I did not particular liked that the success of the main character always came as the natural consequence of coincidence and dumb luck. With her history, I expected her to be a lot smarter. Most of the time I had the real culprit way before her.
Lite, fun and humorous reading. Loved it. Definitely a must read for anyone that does not like dark and gruesome horror stories. Perfect time of year for this 10 book series
This was a charming easy read. I could easily see how teens and up would enjoy this series. Light and relatively uncomplicated while managing to keep the main character in a tizzy. I will look for the rest of the series.